German federal election, March 1933

The German federal election, March 1933 was held on 5 March 1933, not long after the Nazi seizure of power and the Reichstag fire. The federal election saw the governing Nazis attempt to ban the Communist Party of Germany and the Social Democratic Party of Germany from competing, with the Nazi Sturmabteilung stormtroopers unleashing a campaign of violence against communists, socialistss, labor unionists, the SPD, and the Catholic Center Party of Germany. In Prussia, 50,000 SS auxiliary policemen monitored the votes, effectively rigging the election. Nevertheless, the Nazis had to rely on the DNVP to win the election in order to form a working coalition government, as the Nazis won just 43.9% of the vote. Two weeks after the election, Adolf Hitler passed the Enabling Act, giving Hitler dictatorial powers and ensuring that free elections would not be held again in Germany until 1949.